POV Rio
Besides the numerous projects I was working on, there was the usual training. Just recently, I got my Strength to 8. I also got a sizeable amount of experience over the last two months. Not as much as I would normally get if I were exploring, as most of it was from the partial experience from Delta Squad and the various settlers and Minutemen using the Workshops and C.A.M.P.s, and basically any other companion or summon. It got me all the way to level 103, almost 104. I put all the points into Strength as I believe that after over a month of training and no results, it was decently likely that 8 is the highest I can go via training alone. With all those perk points put together, I had 16 in Strength.
I got to 16 thanks to activating the Strength Bobblehead. The bobblehead read: There's nothing you can't do with hard work, and a shovel!
Bucky McGillicuddy and Kicks McGee: You now have unlimited inventory space. You can never become overencumbered. Your Strength stat can no longer go below 16. Your Telekinesis has no weight limit and is free up to 10 times your weight. You can now fly in Power Armor.
The perk was really powerful, but it wasn't as straightforward as it seemed. My inventory was unlimited, but I couldn't just store anything I wanted. Living beings were still off limits, but I could store someone if they were classified as in stasis. I also couldn't just store a planet because it isn't classified as a single object. I could store a machine that had many parts and was very large because it was all one item. But a planet has many things and objects on it. Not to mention it may have living things on it.
The rules were also kind of interesting. I couldn't normally store a house or skyscraper as they had a foundation, which made things blurry on where you draw the line. But if I cut the building off from the foundation, then I could store it with no problem. The rules did get a little more lax if the thing I am trying to store is either owned by me, is within my control, or is not contested. I could store groups of objects like a massive pile of Caps or Steel, as it is a group of very similar or identical items.
The second and third lines of the perk seemed to be immunities/resistances. There are Strength-reducing curses and spells, and there are also spells to make people weighed down or overencumbered. They are somewhat rare, but I will take the immunities. The next part was actually really strong. Theoretically, I could eventually get enough Mana to lift any object. Such as a Moon or Star Ship. The cost reduction based on my weight is actually way stronger than one may originally think. It's not based on my base weight, but total weight. So if I were wearing something very heavy or holding something, then the cost was free up to that value. There is technically a limit, as I can't get too heavy or else I could cause a Singularity. It also didn't count my inventory in that weight calculation, which was fair. It would break the world if it did. The last level was fine. I tested and found that flying in Power Armor was free and felt like I was wearing nothing. It also technically applied to any armor I was wearing, not just things labeled as Power Armor.
Since I put 7 Perk Points into Strength, it left me with 6 Perk Points to spend. The perk I chose focused on Technological and Physical Security.
Operational Security
Spycraft can be the thing that makes or breaks an operation. Thus, we must always be 10 steps ahead of our foes.
Rank 1 (Level 75): Your communications and devices are nearly impossible to crack thanks to highly advanced encryption protocols (also applies to all physical locks). Unauthorized access will alert the owner upon a breach.
Rank 2 (Level 80): Any non-allies using Cloaking Technology will fail once entering your territory. Friendly/Allies Claoking Technology is 300% stronger and less likely to fail (applies to ships and devices)
Rank 3 (Level 85): Friendly/Allies infiltration abilities are 100% better and are more likely to remain without detection for longer. All Allies and Faction Members will never break under torture or interrogation, and they will never divulge secrets.
Rank 4 (Level 90): Counter Espionage, Crime Prevention, and Law Enforcement are 200% more effective. Enemy infiltrations are 100% harder to succeed in.
Rank 5 (Level 95): You and your allies will never leave debris or items behind when killed or defeated. Anything taken from your faction or its allies is impossible to reverse engineer. Your technology cannot be replicated in any other way than natural progression.
The perk was an excellent choice in my opinion. The first rank alone made it nearly impossible to be spied on over communications. When it said our Encryption Protocols were nearly unbreakable, it was true, as from what I could see, the Encryption Protocols were highly advanced, so that breaching them would be hard, but the worst part is that it changes hourly. And no two hours could be predicted to be similar or the same. So you would have to break past the Encryption within an hour, and then you would be able to spy for the rest of the hour before it changed again, and you had to start over. With my maxed-out Cracking Skill, it would still take me nearly 6 hours to get past the Encryption Protocols. So I was fairly confident in our safety.
The fact that the first rank applied to physical locks was the cherry on top. I messed with the locks, and while it isn't nearly as hard to get past as the digital things, it is still brutal. I spent 40 minutes picking a door lock on a house. The terminal Encryption was also really well put together. Similar to the Communications, the Encryption changes hourly, so you require a password to get in, but even that wouldn't help, as you need more than a password to access almost any terminals. The notification was when you either breached forcibly or if you only used a password but failed the other checks.
The second rank was very useful. The auto-fail effect was quite useful, as without cloaking, it is much harder to sneak around. Not impossible, but it makes infiltrators or criminals easier to find. The boost to friendly effects was nice, but right now we only had three types of cloaking: magic invisibility, Chinese Stealth Suits, and Stealth Boys. The third rank was harder to test. But any boost to our agents' abilities was welcome. The last part was especially useful as it meant we were useless when captured and would give us more time to rescue any captured agents or citizens. The fourth rank was a great boost on top of previous boosts; it made our faction an enemy spy's worst nightmare. As for testing it, it was not super easy. For now, they were nice numbers.
The final rank was one of the biggest reasons I chose this perk. The first part was something I already had, but it was just a little more expanded. This applied even if they weren't killed. Debris also seemed to apply to bodies. Which meant anyone who died in the field would be brought home. We learned this by accident when a soldier died in a fight against a Raider ambush. The second part was truly powerful. I now never have to worry about my blasters falling into the wrong hands in any way, shape, or form. Which meant all Minutemen could now be fully equipped. This will increase their lethality and power when operating in the field. It should allow us to see a qualitative leap in power projection and protection of territory.
As for the remaining 2 Perk Points, I saved them for later. Also, with me getting to level 103, it meant I had unlocked another Ascension Perk Slot. Choosing the perk was not easy. It was between personal power and faction power. After some deliberation, I chose to go with a somewhat middle ground as I would be busy and would be exploring other worlds.
Emperor Of All He Saw
"The bell tolls for thee…"
You have uncovered the true Bewitching Bell, and with it, Grogar's forbidden mantle.
The Bewitching Bell:
You can steal abilities from defeated magical enemies or bosses (1 permanent spell per legendary or unique foe).
You may set up to 5 "stolen" powers for quick use, but to swap them out with other stored abilities takes a 24-hour ritual.
Ancient Sovereignty:
All summons, beasts, and creations gain +300% health and deal 2x damage.
Beast-kin, monsters, and feral ghouls will not attack you or your faction and may come to help you or willingly submit upon awareness of the user.
Gives you a kingly aura that makes others more likely to follow you and remain loyal.
Once per day – Tambelon's Return
The sky darkens and the Bewitching Bell rings three times:
You enter a state of lich-like immortality for 60 seconds, immune to all damage and heal from Necrotic, Dark, or Black Magic instead of taking damage.
First: Revives any fallen allies.
Second: All corpses within a vast area rise as undead (allied to the user and will last for 12 hours).
Third: All enemy magic/powers are absorbed by the user and are added as temp mana.
The Ascension Perk was just fantastic. The first part meant I could now set 5 unique abilities from any enemies I came across. It didn't allow me to gain all the powers of the defeated enemy, but it was close enough. Ancient Sovereignty was a completely different story. The boost to summons, beasts, and creations was really useful. It didn't apply to all faction members, but it was close enough as it applied to robots, the summoned Changelings and Griffons, and any allied creatures that fell into the category of beast. So if we say got some battle Deathclaws, then it would be a truly scary proposition. The robot boost would be truly scary if we kept increasing the power and abilities of our robotics. Gaining a form of neutrality with Beast-kin, monsters, and feral ghouls, and even a possibility of allegiance, was great to have. Ferals were already a threat with the Horde near New York, but with this perk, they would sooner ignore us than attack us. I wasn't certain what Beast-kin or Monsters referred to, but I assumed I would find some eventually.
'Maybe Griffons count? In some worlds, they are monsters, and others could maybe call them Beast-kin.'
I left that detail alone for the time being. The next part was about the Kingly Aura. Honestly, I had no idea how to quantify this, nor what it really did. So I just assumed it helped me somehow and let it be. Tambelon's Return was where the perk got into some higher combat abilities. The Lich-like state was nice, but the first bell was a lot more terrifying than most would think. The first bell granted True Resurrection to any allies that died from non-old age wounds within the previous day. The range was pretty great; it was a range of 10 square kilometers or around 3.85 square miles. In perspective, that covered most of Downtown Boston.
[Image Here so you can get an idea]
The second ring of the bell has a much larger radius of 25 square km or around 9.65 square miles. The undead are the weakest variety of the specific type of remains. So for bones, it makes a skeleton with a random melee weapon. Flesh makes Zombies of the non-contagious variety. These could also be holding a random melee weapon, but it's unlikely. The effect also doesn't affect dead allies' corpses. They were fine for fodder and to waste the enemy's resources.
'I guess they could also be used for dumb labor.'
They wouldn't be that great at it as they were that strong physically, and they were mostly dumb as rocks. The third ring was a bit different. As far as I could tell, the last ring's effects would last for around as long as the Lich-like effect would. The range was even larger at 50 square km or around 19.3 square miles. With about 10 seconds between each ring and each ring lasting 5 seconds, it meant I had around 30 seconds of magic and power absorption. And the things absorbed did not have to be aimed at me, just used during the effect. It also didn't affect allies unless it was a debuff or curse, in which case it might absorb the effect if it triggers during the third ring. The Temp Mana would last until I used it all up.
After using up the perks, there was another thing I seemed to unlock. It was called SPECIALization. I could choose one Special to SPECIALization in. That Special could now increase beyond 16, and all skills related to it could now go beyond 100, up to 150. However, the conversion rate was 10 to 1 after 100. The Special to Skill breakdown was as follows.
Melee Weapons: Strength
Unarmed: Strength
Cracking: Perception
Energy Guns: Perception
Explosives: Endurance
Survival: Endurance
Barter: Charisma
Magic: Intelligence
Medicine: Intelligence
Science: Intelligence
Guns: Agility
Sneak: Agility
The joke about Charisma being a dump stat seemed to be fairly accurate, as I had no reason to choose it. A Special beyond 16 was no joke; it could go as high as 20, which is ridiculously powerful. You automatically get one to two points per 150 skill. Speaking of which, a skill of 150 means I would be beyond what many consider the peak of that skill. So, for Melee Weapons, that would mean I was a Grandmaster of all Melee Weapons, and I could out-fight almost everyone else in that field. For Sneak, I would be basically impossible to detect and a master of Stealth and thievery skills.
With all that understood, I had a decision on what to choose. Given potential benefits and what I would need in the future, I chose Intelligence. Science, Magic, and Medicine gave me the most utility and ability to help others, and I honestly like two of those skills the most. The other stats had their uses, but many of them were combat-focused, and I simply wasn't going to always be fighting. It also must be noted that the Stat itself needs to have uses.
Strength was situational as I focus on long-range combat and have unlimited carry capacity. Perception might be able to further increase my Hosigan, but it was honestly good enough as is. As for the skills, Energy Weapons was okay, but I could make better ones with Science, and Cracking was admittedly tempting, but I was already quite happy with the level I have now. Endurance would help me survive, and Survival was a good skill, but is it worth taking over the others? Charisma was questionable in its uses. I got all I needed from the skill already, and Barter was nice, but not worth taking. Agility could help me be more flexible and sneaky, but how useful is that? I can get perks to boost stealth, and I could make technology to hide myself. Then there was Luck, which had no skills attached and was hard to quantify its value. 16 was more than enough for me.
So with all that said, Intelligence made the most sense. Magic was just ridiculously useful, and any increase to that can give me so much more power and utility. Science was instrumental to any society. You can be all-powerful with magic and still lose to sufficiently advanced science. Medicine was a bit more niche, but I did like healing others and helping, so it was good to have.
Once I chose Intelligence, I got a bonus Intelligence point, and then I used up all but 8 skill points and put them into Magic. It was hard to choose which skill to choose between Magic and Science, but in the end, Magic won out since I wanted to complete the Magic Mirror Project. With all the Skill Points I had saved up, I got Magic to 150, and I still had 10 points leftover, which went into Science. Which gave me another Intelligence Stat. The effect was immediate. I felt I could control Mana much more easily. I also understood more about Magic, and I could see several things I did wrong when teaching Cait and what I was missing in the Mirror I was making.
'This will be interesting.'
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Author's Note:
Whew, okay, quite the long chapter with lots going on. But let me add some additional information. 8 is the max a person can train a stat to, as I think anything beyond that is meant to be nearly superhuman levels. I think 9 in Intelligence is considered on par with the Think Tank Scientists. I could be wrong. So I applied that to all the other stats. Now, as for the restrictions in the inventory, I didn't think it would make sense if Rio could just store whatever he wanted, as if he were about to lose, he would just steal the planet. Which, while hilarious, would be kind of dumb. The perk Rio chose was made by combining some perks from Stellaris along with some new stuff. It makes it so Rio can be more liberal with his tech with no worries.
As for the Ascension Perk, I chose it after some thought on what I want Rio to do in the future. It is honestly one of the most powerful perks I made, but it still has some balance to it. Like the undead not being that strong and not lasting forever. Or the length it takes to switch the stored power. The Deathclaw idea didn't come to me until I wrote this chapter, and I realised how pants-soiling scary that would be. Deathclaws are already super dangerous, and now Rio is making them more dangerous? Sucks to be his enemy, I guess. Assuming he can get enough Deathclaws to join the Mintuemen, as it doesn't just apply to all allies.
Now for the SPECIALization, I am curious if anyone would choose a different stat. I will note that Rio is right that further skills can be unlocked. As for the Special to skill connections, I chose most of them based on the source material, but with some minor changes if I thought they didn't make sense, while also trying to balance each stat so one stat didn't have all the skills. If you think some should fit with a different stat, tell me why, and I might change it. Until next time, Ciao.